I just found out about something pretty impressive that happened recently in Barcelona. The Sagrada Familia has finally reached the maximum height that Gaudí envisioned over 140 years ago: 172.5 meters. Literally, nearly 150 years of construction to get to this point.

The crazy part is that they recently placed the top of the cross on the central tower, and now the Sagrada Familia is officially the tallest church in the world. It surpassed the Iglesia Mayor de Ulm en Alemania, which stands at 161.53 meters. Since October last year, when it reached 162.9 meters, it had already held that title.

The operation to install that cross was quite an odyssey. A yellow crane was working since morning, and the piece ( that weighs more than 12 tons ) took hours to be lifted to the top. The workers had to secure it with 40 nuts using hydraulic jacks. The crane operator worked from a cab 140 meters high, with a boom that extends up to 200 meters when fully deployed. Pretty extreme, honestly.

The cross itself is monumental: 17 meters tall and 13 meters wide. It’s made with 15,000 ceramic pieces in different shades of white, from 500 different molds. Gaudí wanted it to shine with the reflection of the sun during the day. It has four arms so it can be recognized from any direction, and if the Ayuntamiento approves, each arm could emit a beam of light as a symbol of the church as a spiritual lighthouse.

What’s interesting is that although it reached its maximum height, there are still years of work ahead. The torre de Bernabé will be inaugurated on June 10, coinciding with the centenary of Gaudí’s death. The presence of the pope was expected, although he has not confirmed his attendance.

Jordi Faulí, the seventh architect of the basilica, was excited about the achievement. He mentioned that creating a four-arm cross that was lightweight and accessible inside was a challenge. The team coordinating all this has 150 people, led by master builder Jaume Oromí.

What surprises me is that the first stone was laid in 1882, and Gaudí died in 1926 without even seeing a torre de Bernabé fully finished. He was hit by a tranvía at age 73. He only left the fachada del Nacimiento advanced and completed the torre de Bernabé so that the basilica looked partially finished and continued attracting donations.

Now, a century later, the basílica is finished in height. The fachadas del Nacimiento y la Pasión are complete, all the torres de los apóstoles, las de los evangelistas, la de María ( inaugurada en 2021 ), and now the torre de Jesús. According to sources from the basilica, the main works could be completed in about a decade, although the fachada de la Gloria is still pending, which is the most controversial part because it would involve demolishing residential buildings.

Honestly, it’s fascinating to see how a project that started 144 years ago continues to progress. The Sagrada Familia has become a massive international tourist attraction, and that has significantly accelerated the work in recent decades. It’s definitely one of those monuments worth seeing in person someday.